Marquinhos initially appeared to take a simple knock to his left ankle in the 34th minute of PSG’s 0–0 draw away to Athletic Bilbao. Despite staying down for several seconds following a late challenge from Oihan Sancet, the PSG captain managed to finish the first half before being replaced at the break by Ilya Zabarnyi.
But after the match, Marquinhos revealed in the mixed zone that he did not leave the pitch because of the ankle collision. Instead, he explained he was dealing with muscle discomfort, which forced him off at halftime.
Already missing several defenders on Wednesday night — Achraf Hakimi, Lucas Beraldo and Lucas Chevalier (injured), plus Lucas Hernandez (suspended) — PSG suffered another blow when their captain had to come off. Zabarnyi took his place and earned his first minutes of the season alongside Matvey Safonov, putting to rest recent speculation about the goalkeeper’s health.
While Sancet’s tackle went unpunished, the Brazilian defender tried to push through until halftime. Unfortunately, the issue was more serious than the initial contact suggested.
Adductor Problem Confirmed
Marquinhos told reporters the real reason for his substitution was a pain in the adductor, not the ankle.
“We’ll see tomorrow,” he said, indicating that medical tests are expected on Thursday to determine the extent of the injury.
In his post-match press conference, Luis Enrique didn’t give many details but didn’t seem overly alarmed either:
“I don’t know exactly what his problem is. Nothing serious, but we need to wait until tomorrow to know more.”
Still, even a minor muscular injury would be unwelcome news for PSG with three important matches remaining in 2025:
– away at Metz this Saturday in Ligue 1
– the Intercontinental Cup final on December 17 in Qatar
– the Coupe de France Round of 64 on December 20 against Vendée Fontenay Foot.